2007 AUVSI Undergraduate
Student UAS Competition
Mississippi State University
March 23, 2007

• Introduction of team
X-ipiter
• Budget and Schedule
• What is a UAS?
• AUVSI Competition Rules and
Regulations
• Air Vehicle
• System Components
• Real World Applications
• Conclusion and Questions

Department of
Kinesiology

Advisors:
Dr. Randolph Follett
ECE Assistant Professor
Calvin Walker
ASE Research Associate
Team Leads:
Team Lead –
Savannah Ponder, ASE – Jr.
Air Vehicle Lead –
Nathan Ingle, Kinesiology – Jr.
Systems Lead –
Brandon Lasseigne, ASE – Sr.

Air Vehicle:
•Marty Brennan (SR,
ASE)
•Sam Curtis (SR, ASE)
•Jonathan Fikes (SR, ME)
•Mike Hodges (SR, GR)
•Richard Kirkpatrick (SO,
ASE)
•Trent Ricks (SO, ASE)
•Wade Spurlock (FR,
ASE)
Systems:
•Chris Brown (Grad, EE)
•Joshua Lasseigne (SR,
CPE)
•Brittany Penland (SR,
ABE)
•Chris Edwards (JR, EE)
•Daniel Wilson (SO,
CPE)
•William Cleveland (SO,
CPE/ASE)

• Allocated Funds: $6,500
– ASE - $2,000
– ECE - $2,000
– Miltec - $1,000
– 5D Systems - $1,500
• Current Expenses: $2,232
• Approximate Travel Expenses: $5,000

And what is the difference between UAV and UAS?
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
A powered, aerial vehicle that does not carry a human operator, uses aerodynamic forces to provide vehicle lift, can fly autonomously or be piloted remotely, can be expendable or recoverable, and can carry a lethal or nonlethal payload. Ballistic or semiballistic vehicles, cruise missiles, and artillery projectiles are not considered unmanned aerial vehicles.
– DOD Joint Publication 1-02
• Unmanned Aerial System –
A system comprised of one or more UAVs and the associated Ground Control Station for command, control, and communication and applicable payloads to perform various missions in either the civilian or military environment.

“The complete mission objectives are for an unmanned, radio controllable aircraft to be launched and transition or continue to autonomous flight, navigate a specified course, use onboard payload sensors to locate and assess a series of man-made objects in a search area prior to returning to the launch point for landing.”
-
AUVSI Student Competition Rules

• Takeoff
• Waypoint Navigation
• Search Area
• Landing
• Total Mission Time

• Manual or autonomous
– Objective: autonomous takeoff
• Paved asphalt surface

• Autonomous Flight (Required)
• Search
– Must pass over each waypoint
– Must avoid no-fly zones
• Airspeed
– Requirement of two speed variations
• Waypoints
– Announced prior to flight portion of the competition

• In-route Search
– Target positioned directly along the 500 feet MSL search zone
– Targets may be positioned up to 250 feet from the search path, while at 200 feet MSL
• Targets
– Plywood targets
• 7 possible shape configurations
• 6 possible sizes
• 7 possible background colors
• 7 possible alphanumeric colors
• 3 possible alphanumeric heights
• 3 possible alphanumeric thicknesses
– Threshold: identify two target parameters
– Objective: identify five target parameters

• Can choose the search pattern
• Flight altitude
– Between 100 feet MSL and 750 feet MSL
• Dynamically re-task in flight
– Utilize to locate a “pop-up” target
• Target Location Identification
– Threshold: ddd.mm.ss.ssss within 250 ft
– Objective: ddd.mm.ss.ssss within 50 ft

• Manual or autonomous landing
– Objective: autonomous landing
• Control on landing
– Scored
• Completion
– “When the air vehicle motion ceases, engine is shut down, and the mission data sheet and imagery have been provided to the judges.”
– AUVSI Competition Rules

• Allotted amount of time
– 40 minutes
– Objective: 20 minutes
• Actionable Intelligence
– Real time observation and target data recorded

• 50% Mission Performance
• 25% Journal Paper
• 25% Oral Briefing/Static Display

• Regulations from AUVSI
• Evolutionary approach
• Current Plane
• Construction Methods
• Performance
• Static Stability and Control

• Weight
– Less than 55 lbs
• Manual override capability
• Flight termination
• Airspeed
– 100 knots
• Sensors
– No ground based sensors
• Capable of changes to airspeed and altitude
• Environmental considerations
– Crosswinds: 8 knots with 11 knots gusts
– Wind: 15 knots with 20 knots gusts at the mission altitude
– Temperature: 110 degrees F at 1000 ft MSL

• Telemaster
• X-1
• X-2
• X-2.5

• Used in the 2004 AUVSI
Undergraduate Student UAV
Competition
• Configuration:
– Tail dragger
– High wing
– Split horizontal stabilizer
– Glow fuel engine
– Flat bottom airfoil
• Problems:
– Insufficient internal space
– Insufficient payload capacity

• Used for 2005 AUVSI
Undergraduate Student UAV
Competition
• Configuration
– Tricycle landing gear
– Conventional propulsion configuration
– Main fuselage with central wing placement
– Gasoline powered engine
– SD7062 airfoil
• Problems
– Access to the payload area very limited
– Weight
– Camera interference
– Electromagnetic Interference

• Used in 2006 AUVSI
Undergraduate Student UAV
Competition
• Data from camera interference solved
• Configuration
– Twin boom
– Pusher
– Tricycle landing gear
– Main fuselage with central wing configuration
– High horizontal stabilizer configuration
– SD7062 airfoil
• Problems
– High cruise airspeed
– Weight

• Current configuration
– Evolutionary design of X-2
• Improvement methods
– Decreased the minimum flight speed
– Increased the fuselage length to handle volumetric problems
– Modified layup schedule to reduce weight
– Brakes to reduce landing distance
– Camera control software
– Connectors

• Wings:
– Airfoil: SD7062
– Span: 128.00 in
– Chord: 16.00 in
– Area: 2048.00 in 2
– Aspect ratio: 8.00
– Wing loading: 3.80 psf
• Fuselage:
– Length: 45.00 in

Empennage
– Horizontal
• Airfoil: J5012
• Span: 32.25 in
• Chord: 9.00 in
• Area: 290.25 in 2
• Aspect Ratio: 3.59
– Vertical (twin)
• Airfoil: J5012
• Height: 7.0 in
• Chord: 9.25 in
• Area: 129.50 in 2
• Aspect Ratio: 0.76

• Materials
– More robust
– Increased payload capability
• Internal Space
– Increased volume
– Accessibility
– Layout
• Camera Interference
– Relocated the engine behind the camera
– Suspend the camera in the interior of the fuselage
– Engine vibration isolation mount

• Electromagnetic Interference
– Shielded and grounded electronic components
– Composite airframe
• Manufacturability
– Molds
• Weight
– Modified the layup schedule
• Airspeed
– Decreased cruise airspeed

• Fuselage
• Wings
• Empennage
• Landing Gear

• Fuselage skin
– Sandwich construction with fiberglass/Divinycell foam
• Bulkheads:
– Sandwich construction with carbon/birch wood or honeycomb

• Wing Skins
– Sandwich construction with graphite/Divinycell foam
• Ribs
– Sandwich construction with graphite/polyurethane foam
• Tubular carbon main spar and anti-torque spar

• Horizontal and Vertical stabilizers:
– Sandwich construction with graphite/balsa wood
• Ribs:
– Sandwich construction with graphite/balsa wood
• Booms:
– Carbon composite tubes

• Tricycle landing gear formation
• Wet lay up carbon composite construction

• Airspeed
– Maximum: 100 knots
– Minimum cruise speed: 38 knots
• Ceiling
– 2,000 feet
• Endurance
– 1 hour
• Takeoff distance
– 200 feet
• Landing distance
– 200 feet

• Cm a
= -1.725 per radian
- Static Margin: 21%
- Statically stable longitudinally
• Cn b
= 0.063 per radian
- Statically stable directionally
• Cl b
= -0.012 per radian
- Statically stable laterally

• Required by AUVSI
• Air vehicle electrical layout
• Ground control station layout
• Command/Telemetry
• Autopilot
• Camera control
• Surveillance

• Takeoff and landing
– May or may not be autonomous
• Continuous flight
– Must be autonomous
• Manual Override
• Waypoint navigation
– Autonomous
– Show the search area
• Dynamically re-task
– Change the search area
• Imagery
– Show imagery in real-time or record the required data for each target

12v Battery
12v Battery Li Battery
Li Battery
Video
Transmitter
PTZ
Camera
Radio
Modem
Radio
Modem
Micropilot
Dual
Power
Servo
Interface
Servos
RC
Receiver
RC
Receiver
Wing
Lights

Radio
Modem
Radio
Modem
Video
Receiver
Laptop:
Micropilot
Camera
Control
Device
Laptop:
Video
A/D
Converter
Laptop: Xipiter
Base Station
Software
RC Control
Power Strip
Generator

GPS
Video
Camera
RC receiver
Video
Transmitter Auto Pilot
Radio
Modem
Radio
Modem
DPSI Twin RC Receiver
Servo:
Throttle
Servo:
Elevator
Servo:
Nose
Wheel
Servo:
Flaps L
Servo:
Aileron L
Servo:
Rudder L
Servo:
Aileron R
Servo:
Rudder R
Servo: brakes
Servo:
Flaps R

• Micropilot 2028g
– Weight: 28 grams
– Dimensions:
• Length: 10 centimeters
• Width: 4 centimeters
• Height: 1.5 centimeters
– Programmable waypoints
– Complete autonomous operations: takeoff, flight, landing.
– Supports 24 servos

• Horizon Ground Control
Software
– Takeoff and landing
– Dynamically re-tasking
• Testing with X-2

• Programmed in C#
• Receives input from camera control device
• Communicates with camera
– Sets pan/tilt/zoom
– Receives pan/tilt/zoom information for calculations
• Captures digital video from camera
– Can take snapshots for analysis

• Camera
– Sony D70
Pan/Tilt/Zoom
• Micropilot/Camera
– Used to find the GPS coordinates of each target
• X-ipiter Base Station
Software (XBS)
– Labview based program

• Theater Wide Demand
• Real Time Intelligence
• Response To Troops in Contact
• Managed Chaos
Real world application section of this brief was prepared by
SGT Mike Hodges, Aviation Operations Specialist, 2-20th
Special Forces Group (Airborne), member of Team X-ipiter.

• Law enforcement
• Border patrol
• Agriculture
• Surveying
• Search and rescue